Manila - Filipino democracy activists on Friday protested in the Philippine capital to denounce China's violent crackdown against Tibetan protesters and to demand freedom for Tibet.

Around 70 activists marched to the Chinese Embassy in Manila's financial district of Makati City, carrying a symbolic torch labeled "torch of freedom for the Tibetans."

They denounced China's restrictions on international media coverage of the protests and violence in Tibet, preventing the world to see the real story.

"Numerous evidences have come out proving that Chinese police have dressed themselves up as monks and as ordinary Tibetans, held knives, robbed and set shops in Lhasa on fire," they said in a statement.

Chinese authorities had blamed Tibetans for the violence that has left at least 140 killed.

More than 1,000 people, most of them monks and nuns, have also been jailed.

The activists urged the international community to "look intently into the incidents in Lhasa" and support the Tibetan people's struggle.

"Stop the violence against the Tibetans," said Egoy Bans, a protest spokesman. "Let the Olympic torch light the way toward restoring freedoms to the Tibetans." (dpa)